Tech fans asked to give up gadgets for charity

Could you survive without your phone for a day

Tech addicts are being asked to give up their gadgets on Saturday March 27 in a bid to raise awareness about the lack of technology available in developing nations.

No Tech Day has been created by Practical Action, a charity that tackles poverty in the developing world by providing poorer nations with simple-to-use technology in a bid to improve their lives.

The charity wants gadget fans to experience what life in the technology-poor developing world is like, by going without TVs, MP3 players, games consoles, laptops, mobile phones and other luxury technology for 24 hours.

Practical Action then wants tech lovers to report back their experiences, in the form of a blog, video, photo diary or even a cartoon strip.

The charity said it will post the best ones on the No Tech Day blog.

"No Tech Day should be fun, but it has a serious side. We want to highlight what life is like for people who don't have access to modern energy and all the gadgets and trimmings that go with it," said Rob Cartridge, head of knowledge and communications at Practical Action.

"Practical Action really believes that giving people access to technology can help them out of poverty and we want to spread that message."